Chorus Communications is a communications provider in Ireland, it offers internet, television and telephone services. It is owned by Liberty Global Europe, and ultimately controlled by John C. Malone's Liberty Media. It is based in Limerick, and owns the cable television and MMDS TV licences for most towns in the Republic of Ireland, outside of Dublin, Galway, and Waterford. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 74 × 65 pixelsFull resolution (74 × 65 pixel, file size: 2 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) The logo of Chorus Communications. ... A private company is a company that is independently owned. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Coaxial cable is often used to transmit cable television into the house. ... The term communications is used in a number of disciplines: Communications, also known as communication studies is the academic discipline which studies communication, generally seen as a mixture between media studies and linguistics. ... A holding company is a company that owns enough voting stock in another firm to control management and operations by influencing or electing its board of directors. ... UPC Ireland N.V. is Liberty Global Europes operation in Ireland. ... A website (or Web site) is a collection of Web pages, images, videos and other digital assets and hosted on a particular domain or subdomain on the World Wide Web. ... Communication allows people to exchange thoughts by one of several methods. ... The telephone is a telecommunications device which is used to transmit and receive sound (most commonly voice and speech) across distance. ... Liberty Global Europe (formerly UGC Europe, and previously United Pan-Europe Communications or UPC, and still usually primarily trading under that brand) is Europes biggest cable TV provider, also providing internet access, telephony and other related services. ... John C. Malone is the current chairman of Liberty Media and graduate and philanthropist of Hopkins School. ... The Liberty Media Corporation is an American media conglomerate. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 52. ... Coaxial cable is often used to transmit cable television into the house. ... Multichannel multipoint distribution service, also known as MMDS or wireless cable, is a wireless telecommunications technology, used for general-purpose broadband networking or, more commonly, as an alternative method of cable television programming reception. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 52. ...

History

The company was formed in 2000, following the buy out of the CMI Cable operator by Irish Multichannel (Princes Holdings Limited). Irish Multichannel, which was a joint venture between Independent News and Media and TCI (later Liberty Media), had been the product of a series of mergers between several regional companies - most notably East Coast Multichannel, Horizon Multichannel, Cork Communications, and Westward Cable. Irish Multichannel held the MMDS licences for most of the Republic of Ireland other than Dublin, Galway, and Waterford, it also had a fairly extensive cable network in Cork and Limerick. Cable Management Ireland meanwhile was owned by several Irish businessmen. With CMI's network being pure CATV, having been assembled from a number of private providers, it was expected that the new Chorus would have to perform some extreme network consilidation. 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Independent News & Media (INM) is a media organisation based in Dublin, Ireland with interests worldwide. ... TCI may refer to the following: Tele-Communications Inc. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 52. ... Cable television or Community Antenna Television (CATV) (and often shortened to cable) is a system of providing television, FM radio programming and other services to consumers via radio waves transmitted directly to people’s televisions through fixed coaxial cables as opposed to the over-the-air method used in...

Suir-Nore Relays was purchased shortly after the merger. In late 2004, Independent News and Media sold its shares in the company to Liberty Media International. Liberty Media transferred its shareholding in the company to its affiliate, UGC Europe (now called Liberty Global Europe), shortly afterwards. On 12 December 2005 Liberty Global Europe completed its acquisition of the other large Irish cable company, NTL Ireland. It is now expected that the two companies will be integrated and become one company, UPC Ireland. 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... December 12 is the 346th day (347th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 19 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... NTL Communications (Ireland) Limited is a cable television and MMDS company in the Republic of Ireland. ...

Services

The fractured nature of the network has led to consumers in different areas getting different channel packages, and has led to extreme problems for the customer services team, who often have no idea what channel package a customer has, at least beyond some core channels. Chorus' customer service has often been the subject of much criticism. In November 2004 it was reported that the company came last in a global customer service survey of 64 telecom companies, receiving a score of just 2.6 out of 10 for response times to customer queries from the Customer Respect Index (CRI). Chorus lost significant market share to Sky who launched a more reliable digital satellite service in Ireland in the early 2000s. British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB - formerly two companies, Sky Television and British Satellite Broadcasting, which merged) is a company that operates the most popular subscription television service in the Ireland. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Since the formation of the unified company, over €130M has been spent on network infrastructure, including providing fibre and microwave links between regions. This has meant customers who were using CATV in the Community Antenna sense now generally have significantly higher quality signal, although poor transmission networks and high compression on microwave links cause MPEG-esque motion problems, even on analogue links. “EUR” redirects here. ... The Moving Picture Experts Group or MPEG is a working group of ISO/IEC charged with the development of video and audio encoding standards. ...

As of 2005, Chorus provide a bewildering array of services, including analogue MMDS, digital MMDS, analogue and digital cable TV, broadband and dialup internet, and both landline and wireless (not mobile) telephone lines. Some areas which had MMDS from Irish Multichannel also had cable from CMI, and hence have a choice of services, often with one being analogue and the other digital. Official figures from December 2004 show that the company had a reach of 319,000 homes, of which 211,000 have cable or MMDS, 600 have broadband and 500 have telephone services. The future looks bleak for their MMDS operations after BBC and ITV services went free to air on satellite. These channels were often seen as the main reason for keeping its analogue service, and were a major factor in Chorus' marketing. 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Broadband in telecommunications is a term which refers to a signaling method which includes or handles a relatively wide range of frequencies which may be divided into channels or frequency bins. ... ← - 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Deaths in December • 30 Artie Shaw • 29 Julius Axelrod • 28 Jacques Dupuis • 28 Jerry Orbach • 28 Susan Sontag • 26 Reggie White • 26 Sir Angus Ogilvy • 23 P. V. Narasimha Rao • 23 Doug Ault • 19 Renata Tebaldi • 16...

The Chorus Digital package was launched on 2 October 2000. It offers a standard line-up in all areas, although it is geared towards the MMDS rather than cable platform, and thus offers a rather smaller line-up than the larger capacity of cable would normally allow. Alongside the traditional terrestrial channels, channels from the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, BSkyB, Flextech, and others are carried. The Irish national channels are offered via MMDS on digital for the first time - on analogue MMDS, only TV3 is required to be carried, because analogue MMDS in Ireland offers a maximum of 12 channels. Unlike NTL, Chorus has not yet discontinued its analogue MMDS service. October 2 is the 275th day (276th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 90 days remaining. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The British Broadcasting Corporation, usually known as the BBC (and also informally known as the Beeb or Auntie) is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world in terms of audience numbers, employing 26,000 staff in the United Kingdom alone and with a budget of more than GB£4 billion... It has been suggested that Channel 3 (UK) be merged into this article or section. ... It has been suggested that Channel Four Television Corporation be merged into this article or section. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Flextech is a British television company and is entirely owned by the British cable company Telewest and acts as its television programme production arm. ... TV3 Ireland is the sole commercial terrestrial television channel in the Republic of Ireland. ...

From 2000-2007, Chorus offered their own Chorus Sports channel, which mainly specialises in Gaelic Athletic Association coverage; although this channel was put on many analogue links at the expense of Deutsche Welle. The channel was closed in January 2007. A stylised Celtic cross serves as the traditional logo of the GAA. The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) (Irish: Cumann Lúthchleas Gael) is an organisation which is mostly focussed on promoting Gaelic Games - traditional Irish sports, such as hurling, camogie, Gaelic football, handball, and rounders. ... This article is about the German international broadcaster. ... It is proposed that this article be deleted, because of the following concern: Crystal ball, user has created future months and dates before, and been told not to (See User Talk:Jose and Ricardo). ...

With the exception of Cork, the company (like NTL Ireland) carries the basic channel pack on all analogue cable links unencrypted, to save on decoder equipment. Premium channels - some of Sky Sports and Sky Movies are always available, with more movies and the Fantasy Channel in some areas - use a simple image rotation system that is similar to 1980s satellite TV systems.

In May 2005, the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland announced that it was issuing Chorus with a ten year broadcasting contract for a cable and MMDS television channel, to replace Chorus Sports, to carry documentaries, arts programming, and a large quantity of sport, although with the remit being expanded to cover motor sports. Had this channel launched when initially licenced, it would have been the first Irish general-purpose channel specifically for closed-access systems, although City Channel has beaten it to this. The licensing documents refer to it as Chorus TV throughout. The forthcoming rebranding as UPC Ireland and the closure of the existing Chorus Sports Channel make it unlikely the channel will be launched in the form, or at least under the name intended. 2005 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Wikimedia Commons has media related to: May 2005 Deaths in May May 26: Eddie Albert May 25: Ismail Merchant May 25: Sunil Dutt May 25: Graham Kennedy May 22: Thurl Ravenscroft May 21: Howard Morris May 21... The Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) is the regulator of the commercial broadcasting sector in Ireland. ... A television documentary is a documentary or a series of documentaries that are meant to be broadcasted on television. ... The Arts is a broad subdivision of culture, comprised of many expressive disciplines. ... Auto racing (also known as automobile racing or autosport) is a sport involving racing automobiles. ... City Channel is a cable television channel operating in Dublin, Republic of Ireland. ...

Availability

Limerick City

Analogue and digital MMDS services are available from a transmitter on Woodcock Hill.

Limerick's cable TV system descends from Westward Cable (later Irish Multichannel) and installation of the network began in the early 1980s. This covers most of the city as far as Castletroy on the south side and Caherdavin on the north side. Unfortunately it never reached some areas of the city (such as around Clare Street), and most housing developments built since then have not been linked to the network. As of 2006 only analogue CATV is available on the system, with 18 unencrypted channels (including Channel 6 and Chorus TV) and some encrypted channels (such as Sky Sports 1 and Sky Movies 1) - customers are supplied with cumbersome old Jerrold/General Instrument decoders to avail of these extra channels. Signal quality varies greatly in areas, and is often quite poor due to the age of the cables and related equipment. MPEG compression artefacts are also noticeably high on some channels which are sourced from digital MMDS signals. Interruption of service is also quite frequent. Channels previously on VHF Band I frequencies were recently moved to Band III positions - this is to make way for the introduction of the cable broadband service. The 1980s refers to the period where corey sucks peters and has a not little to look at his little penis of and between 1980 and 1989. ... Castletroy is a rapidly-growing, and predominantly middle-class suburb of Limerick, Ireland. ... Caherdavin (Pop:6,613 (2002)) is a suburban district in the northern environs of Limerick City in the mid-west of Ireland. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... Channel 6, also marketed as Six, are an Irish cable and satellite television operating, intending to launch on the Dublin, Waterford and Cork cable systems formerly owned by NTL, and Sky Digital in September 2005. ... Broadcasting on the Sky Digital TV platform, Sky Sports was the first of five dedicated sports channels on BSkyB. It launched in 1989 along with Sky News and is still broadcasts today. ... Sky Movies 1 is one of Skys movie channels. ... General Instrument (GI) was a diversified electronics manufacturer which specialised in semiconductors and cable television equipment. ... The Moving Picture Experts Group or MPEG is a working group of ISO/IEC charged with the development of video and audio encoding standards. ... Band I is the name of a radio frequency range within the very high frequency part of the electromagnetic spectrum. ... Band III is the name of a radio frequency range within the very high frequency part of the electromagnetic spectrum. ...

DVB-C and broadband services have slowly been introduced across the city since late 2006.

Future

In May 2005, Morgan Stanley bought the Irish assets of NTL, on behalf of Chorus' owners UGC Europe (now Liberty Global Europe), with the intention of selling them on to Liberty once a Competition Authority investigation has been completed. 2005 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Wikimedia Commons has media related to: May 2005 Deaths in May May 26: Eddie Albert May 25: Ismail Merchant May 25: Sunil Dutt May 25: Graham Kennedy May 22: Thurl Ravenscroft May 21: Howard Morris May 21... Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is an investment bank, retail broker, and credit card provider headquartered in New York City. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Virgin Media, Telewest and Virgin. ... Liberty Global Europe (formerly UGC Europe, and previously United Pan-Europe Communications or UPC, and still usually primarily trading under that brand) is Europes biggest cable TV provider, also providing internet access, telephony and other related services. ...

NTL Ireland included a certain amount of fibre backbone, and a cable network (digital is available throughout most of the network, but the vast majority of customers still take just analogue) that covers the areas of Dublin, Galway, and Waterford for which Chorus are not licenced. NTL also offer broadband to a higher number of subscribers, and did offer a telephone service, which was removed after it was revealed that the handsets they used would catch fire. NTL also own the remaining MMDS licences (for cells covering counties Dublin, Galway, Mayo, and Waterford). A forest fire Fire is a rapid oxidation process that creates light, heat, smoke, and releases energy in varying intensities. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Dublin Code: D Area: 921 km² Population (2006) 1,186,821 County Dublin (Irish: Contae Bhaile Átha Cliath), or more correctly today the Dublin Region[1] (Réigiúin Átha Cliath), is the area that contains the city of Dublin, the capital and largest city... Statistics Province: Connacht County Town: Galway Code: G (GY proposed) Area: 6,148 km² Population (2006) 231,035 (including Galway City); 159,052 (without Galway City) Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Connacht County Town: Castlebar Code: MO Area: 5,397 km² Population (2006) 123,648 Website: www. ... County Waterford (Port Láirge in Irish) is a county in the province of Munster on the south coast of Ireland. ...

On 12 December 2005, Liberty Global Europe completed its acquisition of NTL Ireland, which became part of the UPC Broadband group within Liberty. December 12 is the 346th day (347th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 19 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

It is assumed that Liberty will merge NTL and Chorus, under their UPC (for television) and Chello (for internet) brands, and continue to consolidate their network. The company formed to acquire the network from Morgan Stanley is "UPC Ireland N.V.", fuelling speculation this will be the eventual name. A combined company would own all the MMDS licences and almost all the cable licences in the Republic of Ireland (the local networks in Dungarvan, County Waterford and Longford town being the only major exception). They have announced that $200 million is to be spent replacing all coaxial trunk with fibre and upgrading all cable into homes with cable capable of carrying signals up to 850 MHz. This is claimed to be able to carry multi-channel cable and 30 Mbit/s internet concurrently. chello is the brand of internet service provider-activities of LGI (formerly UGC), the leading provider of broadband internet access via cable (see DOCSIS) in Europe with estimated 2. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 52. ... County Waterford (Port Láirge in Irish) is a county in the province of Munster on the south coast of Ireland. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ...

From December 2006, Chorus began running NTL Ireland's customer service from Limerick, in line with UPC's merger of the two companies. On 22 March 2007, Chorus changed its digital cable line up to a subset of NTL Ireland's line up, using the same EPG numbering system as NTL. The MMDS lineup is still unchanged. December 2006 is the twelfth and final month of the year and will begin in 2 day(s). ... NTL Communications (Ireland) Limited is a cable television and MMDS company in the Republic of Ireland. ... March 22 is the 81st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (82nd in leap years). ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the CE era. ...

Chorus will be renamed as UPC Ireland in May 2007, along with its sister company NTL Ireland. UPC Ireland N.V. is Liberty Global Europes operation in Ireland. ...

Digital TV EPG

Availability of channels is limited to both package chosen and location.

Main article: List of channels on UPC Ireland

The current channels available on the NTL Ireland and Chorus digital television services (both part of UPC Ireland). ...

See also

• List of Irish companies

The following page lists Irish companies or subsidiaries according to their sector. ...

External links

• Official site
• Network Map - is notably missing many non-central nodes, and their entire County Donegal operations.